A WEALTH management business that spun out of private client law firm Turcan Connell in 2015 is being taken over by investment firm 7IM in a deal that will provide an exit for high-profile investors including Crispin Odey.
Tcam Investment Management has agreed to be bought out in its entirety by 7IM in a deal that is expected to close at the end of July.
While the terms of the deal have not been disclosed, Tcam joint chief executive Alex Montgomery said the firm’s backers will all make a positive return on their investment.
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In addition to Mr Odey, a high-profile hedge fund manager based in the City of London, Martin Currie chief executive Willie Watt, Schroders fund manager Robin Parbrook and former Credit Agricole Cheuvreux chief executive François Simon all took part in Tcam’s management buyout.
Several current and former partners of Turcan Connell, including Mr Montgomery and his counterpart Haig Bathgate, also have stakes in the business.
While Tcam has been a standalone entity for less than three years, Mr Montgomery said the firm had decided to take up 7IM’s offer because its board felt the businesses were so culturally similar.
“We were at the point in the evolution of our business where we were being approached sooner than we expected,” he said.
“When we received a couple of approaches we sat down with the board to agree the extent that we were prepared to entertain approaches and what we would look for.
“There were lots of things we could have done and decided not to do.
“When conversations started with 7IM we and they recognised an unexpectedly strong fit in terms of culture and values and in terms of what both businesses can do for clients.
“The point it all converged on was the test that we had to be able to make a ‘good news call’ to our clients about it.”
Another attraction of the combination is that it will allow both firms to achieve their digital ambitions, Mr Montgomery said.
“Our industry has been slow to move online but before the MBO we started working with a software company in Gdansk that built a secure online portal to deliver reports to our clients,” he said.
“Clients can log on to look at what their investments are worth and we can post documents there securely but our capability to develop that as a relatively modestly sized business was constrained.
“Being part of a bigger business means we can really accelerate those plans to enrich the functionality. We will join forces to do that together.”
While 7IM, which was founded in 2002 by Justin Urquhart Stuart and Tom Sheridan, is based in London, it also has an office in Leith that focuses on IT development.
Mr Montgomery said that office “was one of the big attractions” for Tcam.
When the acquisition initially completes both the 7IM and Tcam brands will coexist although the latter will be phased out by the end of this year.
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Both Mr Bathgate and Mr Montgomery will become partners and will have equity in the enlarged firm, which will have a total of £13.6 billion in assets under management. Just over £1bn of the total will come from the Tcam side.
Mr Montgomery will lead the firm’s Scottish presence and will also become head of wealth management across the UK.
He has worked with Mr Bathgate since the late 1990s, when both joined law firm Turcan Connell shortly after it was formed from the private client practice of Dundas & Wilson.
In 2012 they set up Tcam as a wholly owned subsidiary of the firm before spinning it out in 2015.
“We have throughout this process continued to be very close with Turcan Connell and that continues to be the case,” Mr Montgomery said.
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